The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported yesterday (Sunday, Oct 16) that the illicit drug ice/metamphetamine is costing the state upward of $500 million in enforcement and related costs.
The availability and purity of street ice have increased, while the cost has gone down. For those who don't know, "ice" is a highly addictive synthetic drug made from pharmaceutical chemicals (indirectly profited on by large multinational corporate manufacturers/patent owners) that functions as an "upper" or stimulant, which can commonly cause an increase in violence as known to any who live in Hawaii.
Buried in the story was information on how the proceeds are typically laundered: in illegal gambling dens and illegal massage parlors.
So we've got an illegal drug trade flourishing by connections with illegal gambling and prostitution, in a budget-crunched state that is spending millions to prop-up a failing live-meat slaughterhouse in kapolei.
This is an example of how current policies have failed. In classical Indian political theory, vice like prostitution, gambling, and even various drugs were legally available and protected, via zoning laws, to prevent an out of control black market like exists in Hawaii today. Due to complete illegality in the current policy, large criminal enterprises are able to operate with only the occasional law enforcement probe (that can likely be bought off if the syndicate is large enough). Observers of Hawaii's law enforcement community may recall the Internal Affairs investigation of HPD's elite Organized Crime investigative unit, whose plainclothes members were openly fraternizing with leading organized crime figures, while supposedly investigating them. Meanwhile an ethical whistleblower was sidelined.
The war on illegal gambling houses has failed! Cockfights constantly happen all over Hawaii.
Plan/Reccomendation #1: Amend state law to legalize gambling, to increase revenue to the state of hawaii, and Re-direct law enforcement funds from Narcotic/Vice which are wasted in illegal gambling ops (while they continue to run rampant) and serve as laundering for the ice trade toward policing licensed gambling venues.
Reccomendation #2: Legalize prositution - state can raise revenue through licensure of brothels, health and legal protection to sex workers, and can prevent illicit money laundering/sex trafficking through enhanced enforcement leverage on licensed venues.
Reccomendation #3: Legalize Cannabis for recreational use - tax an raise millions for the state budget, while re-directing law enforcement resources from a relatively safe, non-addictive and non-violence causing drug with legitimate medical and spiritual uses (cannabis), toward a dangeorus, addictive, and violence causing drug (ice).
Reccomendation #4 - Cancel state funding for the Oahu Slaughterhouse - instead, reinstate Kamehameha era Kapu on cow-slaughter and focus on ahimsa-non-violent dairy production to position hawaii milk as leading product with state subsidies funded via a tax on imported beef
The availability and purity of street ice have increased, while the cost has gone down. For those who don't know, "ice" is a highly addictive synthetic drug made from pharmaceutical chemicals (indirectly profited on by large multinational corporate manufacturers/patent owners) that functions as an "upper" or stimulant, which can commonly cause an increase in violence as known to any who live in Hawaii.
Buried in the story was information on how the proceeds are typically laundered: in illegal gambling dens and illegal massage parlors.
So we've got an illegal drug trade flourishing by connections with illegal gambling and prostitution, in a budget-crunched state that is spending millions to prop-up a failing live-meat slaughterhouse in kapolei.
This is an example of how current policies have failed. In classical Indian political theory, vice like prostitution, gambling, and even various drugs were legally available and protected, via zoning laws, to prevent an out of control black market like exists in Hawaii today. Due to complete illegality in the current policy, large criminal enterprises are able to operate with only the occasional law enforcement probe (that can likely be bought off if the syndicate is large enough). Observers of Hawaii's law enforcement community may recall the Internal Affairs investigation of HPD's elite Organized Crime investigative unit, whose plainclothes members were openly fraternizing with leading organized crime figures, while supposedly investigating them. Meanwhile an ethical whistleblower was sidelined.
The war on illegal gambling houses has failed! Cockfights constantly happen all over Hawaii.
Plan/Reccomendation #1: Amend state law to legalize gambling, to increase revenue to the state of hawaii, and Re-direct law enforcement funds from Narcotic/Vice which are wasted in illegal gambling ops (while they continue to run rampant) and serve as laundering for the ice trade toward policing licensed gambling venues.
Reccomendation #2: Legalize prositution - state can raise revenue through licensure of brothels, health and legal protection to sex workers, and can prevent illicit money laundering/sex trafficking through enhanced enforcement leverage on licensed venues.
Reccomendation #3: Legalize Cannabis for recreational use - tax an raise millions for the state budget, while re-directing law enforcement resources from a relatively safe, non-addictive and non-violence causing drug with legitimate medical and spiritual uses (cannabis), toward a dangeorus, addictive, and violence causing drug (ice).
Reccomendation #4 - Cancel state funding for the Oahu Slaughterhouse - instead, reinstate Kamehameha era Kapu on cow-slaughter and focus on ahimsa-non-violent dairy production to position hawaii milk as leading product with state subsidies funded via a tax on imported beef
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